When the Moon is Full
by htenywg
Summary: A little story that has been stewing in my head for quite some time. Sirius/Remus. Sirius has some thoughts about Remus...


Haha. Something crazy that has been stewing in my head for a long time now. R/R please!

***

Many people do not realise that the moon is full on two nights. Even less realise that the alleged full moon of the werewolves falls on the day whence the moon is less bright. I do. I realised it a long time ago. The time when I was still in school, playing practical jokes, failing exams and under constant threat of detention…I looked up at the night sky every night, searching out the moon. Why? I was watching, waiting for the full moon.

Some nights, the moon was a sliver of gold; on others, it was oblong, fat, and insecure. The best was still when it was full, and the man on the moon, the lobster, the Japanese rabbit cooking rice cakes and even the Chinese lady on the moon, Chang Er, could be seen clearly, marked out against the black sky. Even now, I am unable to break the habit of changing into a black, shaggy dog and not sleeping the whole night. I do that now to stroll around the neighbourhood and to enjoy the nightlife, but I used to do it for a very different reason. I used to do it to accompany my friend, my love, my everything. My werewolf, Remus Lupin.

It all started all those many years ago when we were studying together. By the end of our second year, I realised with deep curiosity that Remus always left the school grounds to visit his 'ailing mother' on the exact day that the moon was at its roundest. At first, I dismissed it as coincidence, but when I realised that his suitcase never left the dormitory, I began to wonder why. The intriguing factor was the scratch marks that he desperately tried to hide and the fact that he always managed to make it back in school the next morning, looking utterly exhausted and with dark rings under his eyes, standing out on his already pale face. Finally, in the summer of our second year, I understood everything.

As a student, I liked to read ahead. Not study, mind, but simply read. Defence Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration particularly fascinated me. Naturally, imagine my horror when I realised that all the evidence pointed to the fact that my best friend Remus Lupin was quite possibly a werewolf. I remember sitting there, my mind in turmoil, utterly confused and astonished. Remus was, and still is, the non-violent type. He's a gentleman with the girls, respectful to his elders and the peacemaker of our little group. Granted, he did take part in our pranks but still tried to persuade us not to do some of our more outrageous jokes. But then, I reflected, when he lost his temper or was angry, there was a half-crazed flash in his eyes, coupled with an extraordinarily wild and fierce expression. I realised that probably reflected his inner, wilder nature; the side of him that would never go away and was the bane of his life. Eventually, still not knowing how I felt about it, I confronted him in the privacy of our dormitory when the others were out and he admitted it to me. I remember it clearly, his face nervous but his head held high. Every line on his face was filled with fear; fear that his best friend would turn on him or worse, tell on him. That was when I finally knew how I felt and without thinking, I pulled him towards me and hugged him. 

"You fool…did you think I would mind? It is a matter of fact that cannot be helped…a quirk of nature, you might say. Remus, you will always be my friend, forever and ever, no matter what you are."

He didn't say anything, but the sudden dampness of my robes told all.

***

For the next few months, I spent my time secretly researching about Animagi. Finally, I was convinced that I knew how to go about doing it. I spent a month or two preparing the spell itself and I was pleasantly rewarded one day when I turned into a dog. Perfect for my name. It was only towards the end of our third year that James and Peter finally knew about Remus and they too decided to become Animagi. Lily had decided not to, having had bad scrapes with animals throughout her life. However, she supported us by covering up for us on the full moon nights when we accompanied Remus out on his monthly transformations.

But the months I spent alone with Remus until the other Marauders had become Animagi were wonderful. I once spent the whole night stroking his fur just to soothe him after a particularly bad bout of wolfishness. In the process of trying to stop him, I gained some severe scratches too, but all I cared about was for the figure in front of me. Finally, he collapsed, trembling, and I took him in my paws and stroked his madness away. It was during these months that we became very close and eventually more than just friends.  I can still recall every detail of that day when we woke up on the floor of the Shrieking Shack and he told me, throatily and lovingly, that he had fallen for me. And I whispered back to him that I loved him too, had loved him for a long time…

We didn't go at it until we were 17, just before we had to graduate and leave Hogwarts. I tugged on his hand one day, just after dinner, and brought him to a room that I was sure nobody save the other Marauders knew about. Let's just say that it was a cosy little room, perfect for this. We went at it slow, trembling, neither ready for it. Fact was, we had no knowledge as to how to go about it other than the stuff one reads and the details we heard from James. And we stumbled back to the common room afterwards, drunk and heady with our love.

Then we graduated, and the four Marauders continued to meet. Professor Dumbledore had suggested a lone mountainside, devoid of any habitation – literally. He even gave Remus a Portkey that automatically brought him there every month. And the rest of us? We travelled miles just to be with him. He knew we were willing to do it, so he didn't protest. We _were _willing to do it, especially me. Then we stayed a week together, travelling, or just playing around. And then the rest of us travelled back. 

Then James got married to that pretty Prefect – what was her name again? Oh yes, Lily. Gorgeous. I would have snitched her first if I didn't have Remus already. So anyway, they got married, and I was his best man. We all turned up. We were really happy for them. I mean, they had been dating for years, and they finally got married. Lily knew all about Remus, and was really understanding about it. She didn't mind that James went to him every month, but requested that he stay only for three days, not a week. We understood, and let him off, always teasing him that he was henpecked. 

***

And tomorrow night is a full moon. So here I am, packing my bag, getting ready for tomorrow. I love him, you know. Truly, madly, deeply. 

I looked up at the oblong moon. 

_Hold on, Remus. I'm coming to see you…_

_When the moon is full._


End file.
